Where do I take my energy

Few weeks ago in the late night, my friend asked me, where do I take the energy. He knows I have work, couple of sides projects and from time to time I try to write here some post. Is it some kind of a coffee? Or something else? I didn’t know how to answer, but I was thinking about it during a walk.

The key is to be like…

Here are some of my thoughts – or better say – my approach to programming.

Like a child

You have to be curious how things work. Someone shows you a database and you should have urge to get more informations about it. How does it work? What are relations? How does indexes work? Where can I use it? So you come home, wake up your computer and start reading and trying. It is like a new toy and you want to know all the ways you can use it.

Like a sportsman

I am playing badminton ( but this can be whatever else ). It is something I like doing, I want to get better and better so I find a trainer. He is here to say me how to improve and warn me if I am doing something wrong. The same is applicable on programming. You should find someone better than you. It can be anyone – colleague, friend, someone from the internet. Ask him, how he would solve the problem or discuss your solution with him.

Like a chess-player

When you are playing chess, you cannot just move the chess pieces as you want and without thinking. Or when you do that, you have to be prepared you are probably going to lose. Again, it is like programming : when you are working on something, you should think about it first, get to know your situation and plan further steps.

And, of course, you have to read the rules. Every board game has its own rules and if you don’t respect them, you take away the fun from it. Sometimes, it may seem that they are clear, but they are not. If you start to use a new language, read naming conventions, recommended directory structure, etc. Even something like JSON can be done as this : {"<PROPERTY NAME>":"value"}. It is valid, usable, but…it’s not a good pattern.

Conclusion

I think, all this together makes it clear where do I take my energy. I love what I am doing, I love programming and if you like something this much, you will always find some energy. ( It’s like with the badminton. When someone calls me “Hey pal, we are missing one, can you come and play at 7?”. I know I am tired but I just cannot say no… )